2008-05-15 08:01:10 | pauls writes:

Ebay item 5/15/08
cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Jaguar-Mark-II-3-8-CALIF-CAR-SAME-OWNER-FOR-28-YEARS-RUN ...
Current bid $5,144.00, no reserve, 11 bids, 5 days left in auction.

Sellers description:
1961 Jaguar Mark II 3.8 with an overdrive transmission, power steering and aftermarket Arctic Kar air conditioning. It was purchased in 1980 from a neighbor down the street (Carlsbad, California), for the oldest daughter to drive to college. It was driven to local car shows in the 1980’s and has been in indoor storage since 1986. The car has been started and driven short distances periodically since 1986 and still runs great and drives. It was last registered in 1996 and has a clean California title.

The cars condition is as follows:

Body:
Straight and almost 100% rust free. The trunk and floors have no rust. The driver’s side front fender has a little (as shown). Two doors show minor bubbling on the corners, not all the way through. The old lacquer paint (over 25 years old) is cracking and faded, so it will need a new paint job. The pictures of the trunk make it look like it’s rusty, but it’s surface rust only, no holes through. The frame is not rusty, scaly or bent. The car shows no accidents, front or rear. However, the passenger side fender has had repair work done at one time (a fender-bender). The car is originally white with a black interior and has been painted maybe three times (white each time). The bumpers, grille, tail light housings and door handles still have shiny chrome; however, they all have some pitting and hazing. The grille is in very nice shape, not bent. All the glass is good, no cracks. The redline tires have tread on them but are cracking. Looks to be the original Dunlop spare in the trunk.

Interior:
The seats were recovered years ago in black vinyl and are still in good shape, with no rips. The carpet needs to be replaced. The steering wheel has some cracks. The headliner is nice except near the back window is tearing on both sides. The original door panels are warped but have no rips or tears, except the driver’s side arm rest has a tear. All the wood grain will need refinishing. All the gauges work, including the tachometer. All the inside courtesy lights work. And believe it or not, even the red light that tells you the emergency brake is on still works. The radio and booster work.

Mechanical:
The 3.8 motor runs great, with no smoke or noises. The overdrive transmission works well, no noises. I have a bunch of receipts dating back to 1976, along with the original manual. The most important receipt that I have is dated 6-22-76 from Scandinavian Automotive in Covina, California for the following work done at odometer reading 98,751 miles, with current miles reading 121,423: Steering pulley joint replaced, plugs, sub-mounts, rod bearings, upper and lower timing chain, head set, conversion set, exhaust valve guides, main bearings, piston and rings, gear, nuts and bolts, chain tensioner, exhaust valves, pressure plate, disc, throw-out bearing, turn crank shaft, clean and repair radiator, re-core. All this work totaled $1591.00 in 1976. Complete exhaust system put on in 1976, which still sounds great. The car has been driven 22,672 miles since this work was done. Believe it or not, the air conditioning fan turns on and the belt is still hooked up, and maybe with a charge may work. The emergency brake works.

The car runs great but as mentioned before has only been driven short distances, so I would suggest having it serviced before taking it on any long distance drives. I’m sure it’s going to need some type of brake work, tune-up, maybe a radiator flush, oil change, etc.